


Blurred Lines

by Salty_and_OverDramatic



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Androids, Blood, Cyborgs, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Fighting, Future AU, M/M, More tags later, all that cool future stuff, cursing, probably, sci-fi i guess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-16
Updated: 2018-01-21
Packaged: 2019-03-05 11:04:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13386486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Salty_and_OverDramatic/pseuds/Salty_and_OverDramatic
Summary: The robotics registration act was supposed to protect humanity from the dangers of AI and the monsters that were androids. Keith knew better. Androids weren't dangerous. They were human. They had emotions. They were alive.He should know.He was one.-Discontinued-





	1. The Arena

Here’s a question: what do you do if you can create anything in a workshop from metal and a piece of software?

You become one of the most respected families in the known world.

That was the case for the Holt family. The owners and founders of Holt Robotics. It was a cutting-edge robotics company that created devices for all uses from remotely steering vehicles to medical procedures. Holt Robotics also offered a wide variety of custom made artificial limbs and enhancements to improve the lives of those who had lost limbs or other body parts or senses in accidents or the like.

The company had been founded by Samuel Holt and Colleen Gunderson when they were merely twenty-five. They were best known for their work with Artificial Intelligence. They improved the existing design to the point where the AI started to feel things on its own. It formed memories, complex thought patterns and had emotions, just like a human.

A perfect artificial human was just within their reach when the government issued the robotics registration act.

The robotics registration act was an order proposed by a conservative political party that had always been against AI and robotics in general. The purpose of the act was to register every single android using an advanced AI, especially any of the Holt Robotics models. They said that giving a machine too much power and intelligence would eventually lead to the android takeover and the destruction of humanity. Now every android was required to have an ‘owner’ to limit their freedom and make sure they didn’t act out. That was a nicer way of saying that androids were sold to those who had enough money to own one. They were totally at the mercy of their owner, living in fear of them getting tired of their robotic slave and casting them out to die.

And that’s where places like this came into the picture.

On the outside the building didn’t look like much. It was little more than a concrete block near the industrial area of the city, but on the inside, it was a completely different story.

The place was called ‘The Arena’ It was a sanctuary for androids who had been cast out, and a place where they could be appreciated, though not for the reasons they most likely hoped for. 

The Arena was essentially a fight club where they pit androids and cyborgs against each other. The society didn’t treat the latter nearly as horribly as it did the former, but with the social pressure from the general population and the promise of good income many cyborgs were lured into the Arena, trapping them into a vicious cycle of fighting and losing.

Matt had found the Arena completely by accident about three months ago. He’d been looking for an android who had been kicked out by her ‘owner’. Matt wanted to rescue her before the government found her. Her name was Shay and she was the sweetest android Matt had ever met. She was their first real success at giving the AI a personality and hers had been so bright and lively. She had been a dear friend of his and he refused to let her die.

He’d found her in the arena, battling against another android who looked equally unprepared. Matt had no idea what was going on back then. Now he knew exactly why she’d come there. She had no choice. Here she would be safe and taken care of. Matt wouldn’t be able to protect her. His family was followed tightly by the media. He couldn’t say that he suddenly had a new sister-

Pidge punched his arm, walking ahead without looking back. “Stop daydreaming Matt! It’s starting in ten minutes!”

Matt took a few running steps to get back to get side. They entered at the same time. 

The room was round. Rows of brightly colored chairs stretched around the room and the walls were covered with blue, red and purple banners to make the dark gray room look more inviting. The ceiling was high, and the room was well lighted, especially the ring in the middle of the room. There were spotlights already pointed to the empty ring that was separated from the audience by barrier of clear plastic. Sometimes people got mad when the person they bet on lost and tried to attack the fighter.

It seemed insane how they were willing to hurt a living being because of something so small.

Pidge poked at Matt again, glared at him and told him to move. Matt did. They managed to find two seats near the back, next to a group of loud college students who were arguing about who they believed to win the matches.

The younger Holt groaned and lifted her feet up on the seat in front of her, scaring the young boy already sitting on it. He looked at her with wide eyes, a confused look in his eyes before turning to his father who glared at Pidge but said nothing. Pidge didn’t even notice them.

“Why did the match have to be today? I have a project due tomorrow!” the girl whined, sliding her eyes closed and covering her face with her hands for dramatic effect.

“Well, you didn’t have to come.” Matt pointed out. “You chose to come here instead of studying.

A loud bark of laughter made everyone’s eyes turn to the sibling duo. “You would be lost without me Matt.” The younger teased, folding her arms over her chest and shooting a shit-eating grin at him. “You wouldn’t survive five minutes alone, you walking meme!”

Matt decided to ignore her comment. She was right, of course, but Matt wasn’t going to give her the pleasure of hearing him admit it. “Whatever. Who do you think is going to win?”

“The one everyone is betting on of course. The big winner of the day.”

“Shiro?”

Matt knew without looking that Pidge was glaring at him again. “You and your obsession with Shiro- I mean the Red master! You idiot.”

“Ah. Kogane. He’s fighting against Nyma, right?” 

Pidge nodded. “Yup. an obvious win for Red. Nyma sucks. She can’t even defeat Shiro.”

“That’s because he is actually the best fighter and just lets Red be at the top.” Matt had seen Shiro fight. There was no way he could actually fall for half of the things he does when he’s fighting Kogane. It never made any sense to Matt. Clearly there was something shady about the situation.

“You absolute imbecile! You’re biased. Kogane could beat him fair and square.” Pidge protested. There was a fire behind her golden eyes. The look she got when she was getting angry and defensive. Matt knew better than to bother her when she was like that. It would only end badly. Apparently Pidge wasn’t in the mood to talk about this any longer.

Matt shrugged, pretending the look in Pidge’s eyes didn’t make him want to run away as fast as he could. “I guess it can’t be proved.” Now, a quick subject change- “You wouldn’t win very much if you were betting on Red though.” Wait no- That’s still too close to the dangerous subject. Plan B!

 

“Well it’s good I’m not betting then.” Pidge said, finally taking her legs off the chair in front of her. “It’s starting!”

She was right. The crowd suddenly went quiet as the lights dimmed, leaving the arena brightly lit to draw everyone’s attention to it.

“Welcome ladies and gentlemen!” The announcer yelled into his microphone. His voice was nasally and annoying. Matt was glad he wasn’t going to be talking much after this. Not only was his voice grating to the ears, his sense of humor was even worse, filled with dry humor and dumb commentary. “To the Arena MASTERS NIGHT!”

The crowd cheered. They were excited for tonight. Why shouldn’t they be? That day they had one of the most exciting battles of the year and no matter how much Katie insisted it was Red’s fight, it wasn’t. It was Purple vs. Blue, Shiro vs. Shada

Shada was relatively new to the Arena. He was a cyborg who had appeared some five weeks ago and had blasted his way to the top faster than anyone. He’d quickly become the crowd favorite. He was charming and skilled. He used his opponent’s weaknesses against them and his fighting style looked like a violent dance. People loved Shada. He never fought the same twice despite having some patterns and kept things interesting to the viewer. He enjoyed having everyone’s eyes glued to him. He loved the attention and always made sure to put on a show.

He was near unbeatable. but so was Shiro. Everyone was dying to know who would win.

“Now! The moment you’ve all been waiting for! The battles.”

The cheering covered the sound of the doors opening and the first fighters stepping in the ring.

“A fighter wins when they knock their opponent down and they remain down for thirteen seconds without anything holding them back or if their opponent is knocked unconscious. No audience help is allowed. 

And remember, Leave the fighting to the ring. Now, LET THE FIRST FIGHT BEGIN!”

The fighters took their stances on the opposite sides of the arena. They seemed to be evenly matched. They were about the same height and build. One of them was an android while the other was a cyborg with mechanical legs. They circled each other for a moment before one charged at the other faster than his opponent could react and started his attack. 

“Why are they wearing different colors?” The boy sitting in front of them asked his father loudly. The older male tried to explain the reasoning behind it, but it was clumsy at best. He clearly wasn’t a regular viewer. 

All fighters were wearing white skintight bodysuits with different colored glowing lines. There were six colors and each color was an indicator of that fighter’s level. There were six levels in total. The attacker was level three, green. He looked skilled and could quite possibly defeat his opponent eventually despite them being blue. Level four. The line between level five and four is blurred. They were often so evenly matched that it was difficult to know if someone won because of skill or because of a dumb mistake the other person made.

In the ring the green fighter knocked down his opponent. They stayed down.

“Victor wins!”

Matt inched forward in his seat as did everyone else. it was so quiet that you could hear a pin fall. Everyone was holding their breaths.

“Welcome, Shiro of purple and Shada of blue!”

The audience exploded in cheers again. It got so loud that Matt had to cover his ears. 

In the ring Shada was waving excitedly, undoubtedly a huge smile on his half- metallic face. His left arm and both legs were mechanical, and the blue lines of his suit looked like they were glowing brighter than the others.

On the opposite side of the ring, Shiro stood in his white and purple suit. He wasn’t the type to put up a show for the audience like Shada. 

Eventually the audience quieted down. The fighters looked at each other for a long time before beginning the fight.

Shada dodged the blow aimed at his head. He quickly jabbed at Shiro, hitting him in his side, then quickly dancing out of his reach before Shiro could grab him.  
Shiro charged at Shada, The shorter stepped out of the way,  
Shada kicked Shiro in the chest, making his opponent groan and try to get a hold of the leg, but the boy was quickly out of reach again.  
They continued the same dance for a while. Sometimes it looked like either Shiro or Shada were going to lose, but the other always managed to block or avoid the attack.

It was mesmerizing to look at. Matt always loved watching Shiro fight, but there was something different about this one. Both were following the other’s moves, forming and revising their plan over and over again. Matt had never seen a more evenly matched fight. Matt wished he could see their faces and hear what they were saying. there was clearly more to the story than the relaxed and almost lazy way Shada danced away from Shiro and the way Shiro grew more and more annoyed with each word from his opponent’s mouth. Matt wanted to know more. He wanted to know everything about the fight between the two most interesting characters in the whole fight.

Then Shada slipped up.

He got cocky. He tried to get too close and execute his moves with too much of a dramatic flare. He wasn’t fast enough and Shiro was able to grab a hold of his arm and toss Shada above his shoulder.

The boy scrambled up and tried to regain his footing, but he wasn’t fast enough. He got hit several times in the chest and arms with a fast pace until the final blow was delivered to his stomach, making him double over and fall to the ground.

Everyone was holding their breaths again. Seconds felt like hours as they ticked toward that important thirteen second mark.

Shada made an attempt to push himself up, but he couldn’t, instead curling in a tight ball, holding his stomach like he was in pain. Shiro took a few steps toward his fallen opponent, but a yell from the audience stopped him. He wasn’t allowed to touch the other man until the thirteen seconds were over.

Shara attempted to get up again, but this time he shuddered and covered his mouth. Matt couldn’t see it himself, but he could tell from both fighter’s reactions: Shada had coughed up blood.

“Shiro wins!”

The audience stood up and either screamed curses at Shiro or cheered at his victory, but the man himself rushed to his opponent’s side. He quickly gathered the shorter man in his arms, covering him from most of the audience’s view. He yelled something, probably “Help! He’s unconscious.” or something like that. 

Pidge grabbed Matt’s hand, startling her brother. She’d never done that before. Not under any circumstances. “Shiro didn’t kill him, right?” Her voice was shaking. Her eyes were trained on the retreating forms of the people who had taken Shada away. 

Not intentionally at least. Not only was it one of the rules, that wasn’t the way Shiro did things. He never fatally hurt anyone. Matt couldn’t imagine him wanting to harm someone like Shada.

“No. He must have just knocked Shada unconscious. He’ll be fine.” Matt hoped.

People started trickling out and the next fight was announced like nothing happened. It angered Matt how one of their fighters was injured to the point where he had coughed up blood and nobody bothered to say anything about it. Matt should really stop coming to these things. Screw ogling at Shiro when he fought, he couldn’t watch someone get injured like that and have it just brushed off. It was insane. It was not human. it was-

“That’s foul! You’re not allowed to aim for the head!” Pidge hissed, almost getting up from her seat to scream it out for everyone to hear, but Matt stopped her. Matt hadn’t even realized the fight had started. It was going about as predicted except Red’s opponent was aiming to hit his head. What was with everyone and questionable methods today?

“It’s not. Aiming for the head is completely acceptable when you’re fighting against an android.” Matt hissed.

“But she could have hurt him.”

“I know.” They had no choice and fighting in the ring could get violent, especially after you’d been there for a long, long time.

The Arena is like a drug to the fighters and the viewers. One time will hook you for a lifetime. You always need to come back. There is no escape.  
Only the arena.


	2. The Memory

A light breeze brushed though the tall trees in suburbia, making them sway softly and scaring away the bird that had been sitting on one of the branches. Another pair of birds was circling each other, singing their songs as they flew. A big, cream colored dog trotted down the sun-warmed sidewalk, a slobbery chew toy in its mouth. The dog turned to a pale blue home and squeezed itself through the doggy door and into the tiled kitchen filled to the brim with restless, hungry McClains.

The family had gathered around a worn, round kitchen table. It didn’t have enough room for all of them, but they were too fond of the table to replace it. It had scratches on its surface from the time Anna had been learning to use scissors and paint on the legs from the time Lance and Felix had decided it would look better if it was orange. There was also glitter that they couldn’t get off no matter how they tried. Nobody remembered where it came from but eventually it had been accepted as a part of the memories.

Lance was squished between his sisters. His younger sister Sofia was bouncing on her seat impatiently. She was three and like most kids, she wasn’t very patient. Anna, Lance’s older sister, was arguing with Leo about whether books were better than movies or not. Anna was team books, Leo preferred movies.

Now and then Lance’s father threw a comment at something they said. He was standing in front of the stove, flipping pancakes. He wasn’t as good of a cook as Lance’s mom, but allowing her anywhere near the stove when she was still half asleep was the worst idea ever. It was highly likely that the house would burn to the ground. She was an amazing mother and a great cook but a morning person she was not.

Sofia whined and slid off her chair. “I want pancakes!”

Lance’s mother chuckled. She got up and walked around the table to help Sofia back on her feet. “Be patient Sofia. Food is almost ready.” She said

“Your mama is right” Lance’s father said, flipping the last pancake. “I am almost done.”

“Sounds like I came at a good time then.” Felix said. He was walking in the kitchen with a wild bedhead and the remains of an acne cream on his face. He was twelve and puberty was none too kind to him. He hadn’t hit his growth spurt yet, but he was going to be tall, like all members of the McClain family.

The family dog made its way to the new arrival. He stared up at Felix with huge brown eyes until the boy started scratching him behind the ears. The dog leaned against Felix and wagged his tail excitedly.

Lance’s father put the plate of pancakes on the table. “Well look who woke up. It was about time. We thought we would have to send Sofia to get you.” he teased.

Sofia smiled proudly. She probably didn’t realize that it was a threat and took it as a compliment. Sofia was the loudest McClain and that said a lot. They were all loud and talked a lot, but Sofia was easily the most talkative.

Felix shivered. “I’m glad I woke up.” He muttered. He patted the dog’s head a few more times before joining his family at the fable. 

After that the conversation fell into a comfortable pattern. Joking and talking together. Breakfast was over quickly, but that meant that they would get to go to the beach sooner.

The kids were running around the house, trying to find their swimsuits and towels. Nothing seemed to be where it should be. It was so chaotic. The kids were yelling at each other as they tried to find their belongings.

“Felix, do you know where my goggles are?”

“They’re in the kitchen.”

“Why the hell are they in the kitchen?”

“Anna! Why is your bikini in my drawer?”

“I don’t know!”

“Does anyone know where my towel is?”

In midst of all the chaos, Leo was sitting on the living room couch with his phone. He’d already packed and thus didn’t have to take part in the chaos. He chuckled as he snapped a picture of Felix attacking Lance with a towel thrown over his head. The older brother had grown tired of Felix joking and silenced him with a towel. It was really funny. Usually it was the other way around.

There was a crash and a yell from another room. Beach days were always an experience.

.  
.  
.

Twenty minutes later the McClain children had packed their bags and were all sitting in the car. Lance, Anna and Felix were singing along to the radio while Leo and Sofia just listened. Sometimes their mother would join them for half a song or sing made up lyrics over the actual ones. 

It was nice to spend time together. Usually they were too busy to get together like this and do something as a family. Their parents didn’t have many vacation days and Anna had gotten a summer job that year. all these things decreased the time they could spend together so they cherished these moments.

The kids jumped out of the car the moment it was parked. They couldn’t wait to get in the water.

“First one in the water gets to ride shotgun!” Anna yelled, throwing her shirt aside to get to the water as quick as possible.

“Hey! You’re already wearing your swimsuit! No fair!” Leo yelled.

Anna laughed and ran into the water. “I won!” She yelled, jumping up and down like a sort-of victory dance. She then dove underneath the waves and disappeared from sight.

The other McClain kids followed shortly after, except for Lance, who had spotted his best friend Hunk sitting on the sand a short distance away. The brunette made his way over and sat next to his best friend.

“Hey Hunk” The Cuban said. He closed his eyes and leaned back to enjoy the warmth of the sun on his face. 

“Hi Lance” Hunk greeted. “How are you?”

“I’m great! I have no school, the whole family is spending time together on a beach and I have my best friend right here. This may just be the greatest day of my life.” Lance chuckled, a smile playing on his lips. He loved spending time with his family, especially on the beach. They only went to the beach with the whole family. It felt special because it was. 

Hunk hummed. Knowing Hunk, the boy was probably nodding too. “Yeah. It’s pretty great.”

A comfortable silence fell between them. Lance could hear the splashing of the water and the laughter of his siblings as they played in the water. His mother yelled something, but it didn’t sound like anyone listened to her.

“How often do you come back here?” 

“Hm?”

Hunk sighed. “You know what I mean” He sounded, older, more tired than before. Far older than the fourteen-year old he should sound like. 

Lance frowned. So that was it. Nothing else changed. Just Hunk and the weight that now pressed down Lance’s shoulders. The brunette sat up and looked at his best friend.

Hunk was indeed older. He was taller, and his shoulders were broader. His face wasn’t round and adorable anymore and he had grown his hair out so much that it could be pulled pack into a small bun. There were permanent worry lines etched on his forehead. Lance knew that they were there because of the constant worry Hunk felt over him. 

Hunk was only nineteen, but he looked so much older.

“Yeah. I know.” Lance muttered. He pulled his knees to his chest and looked at his siblings who were blissfully unaware of the situation. They could laugh and play like nothing was wrong because to them, everything was fine. It was a beautiful day on the beach with the whole family. They were happy as they should be.

“Did you manage to get a call to your mom?”

Lance shook his head. “No. She was busy. I’ll have to try later.”

“Soon they’re going to start wondering why the bills aren’t coming. You have to tell them.” Hunk pointed out. He was right, and Lance knew it.

“I’ve been trying. I just can’t reach them.”

“Then why do you always call when you know your mother is at work?” Lance opened his mouth to protest but he couldn’t find the words. “Why don’t you call one of your siblings? They’re old enough to understand now, Lance.”

The brunette shook his head. “I’ve been busy. I haven’t had the time to call anyone but mom. I’m-”

“Afraid.” Hunk said bluntly.

Lance bit his lip. Hunk was right. He was afraid. He knew his family loved him, but their reactions terrified him. He should have told them what he was planning from the beginning, but they would have stopped him, so he didn’t and now he has made them worry for months. He couldn’t just waltz in through the front door, yelling ‘I’m home’

They wouldn’t react well to that.

Seconds turned to minutes and neither said anything. The noises were fading and Lance’s vision darkening but he still held onto that moment like a lifeline.

Hunk startled Lance by speaking.

“You know you can’t stay here forever. It’s already fading.”

Lance sighed and ran a hand though his hair, trying to avoid looking at Hunk’s pitying expression. “I know” He muttered. “I just wanted to have a moment.”

“With your family. You love them more than anything.”

“Of course.” Lance said. “I’m doing this for them.”

The scene faded away before anything else could happen.

.  
.  
.

Lance came to in a brightly lit room. He was laying on a hospital bed with some outdated hospital equipment next to it. The machines weren’t on so Lance’s condition couldn’t be that bad.

He tried to look to the other direction but found that he was unable to move his head.

The Cuban frowned and tried again. He tried to move any of his limbs or head but nothing. 

“You won’t be able to move.” A woman’s voice said. Instinctually Lance tried to look to the direction of the voice but like before, he was unable to do so.

There was clicking of heels and a face suddenly appeared in Lance’s view. Lance stared at the woman’s eerily beautiful face as she helped him to a sitting position to be more comfortable. She had dark eyes and long blonde hair that was tied in two braids that joined at the back. She was wearing a white dress-shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, exposing the metal of her left arm. It was shiny, and you could see tiny cogs and wires in the joints. Her arm was an older model. She probably couldn’t afford to get an upgrade which was a shame. Older models were more difficult to control.

“I’m sorry about this. The only anesthetic we have can cause temporary paralysis in some patients. Seems like you were one of the unlucky ones.” The woman smiled apologetically. She picked up a clipboard and wrote something down.

Lance blinked. “Isn’t that stuff illegal?” 

The woman laughed heartily. She had a beautiful laugh. It was like a song you’d heard a long time ago, but that still brought a smile to your lips years after. “Everything in this place is illegal. Why are you surprised?”

Honestly, Lance didn’t know. He should already know that everything there was shady. He knew that they issued solitary confinement to those who acted out and that they locked the doors every night. He wouldn’t be surprised if they had put a tracker on each of them to prevent them from leaving. The Arena wasn’t a good place but to someone who could cheat the system, it would be a quick way to make lots of money and Lance knew perfectly well how to cheat the system.

“I’m Doctor Luxia.” The woman introduced herself. Her hand twitched like she was going to shake his hand, but she stopped herself, gripping the clipboard tighter instead. “I’m the leading doctor in this facility.” There was edge of sarcasm in her voice. Lance didn’t know why.

“So, Mr. Shada” Dr. Luxia flipped through the papers in her hands

Lance flinched. Shada was a name he’d seen on TV once. He’d like it and decided to use it as his alias in the Arena because he didn’t want people to know his actual name. They could tell his parents and that would mean ending this little act before it even began.

“Your body doesn’t seem to have taken any permanent damage. There will be some bruising around the stomach and chest area and your ankle will be wrapped up for a few days because in your attempts to avoid your opponent, you twisted it. I recommend limiting your movement for the next few days to ensure you heal quickly.”

Lance nodded. “Thank you Doctor Luxia.”

The woman nodded. “Oh, there was someone asking about you on the outside. Should I let him in?”

It was probably Hunk. He was already worried because Lance fought in the arena, but he would have freaked out when he saw Lance collapse on the ground after his last match. Hunk was the best friend Lance could ever hope for. He didn’t know what he would do without Hunk.

“Of course. Let him in.”

Luxia opened the door. She changed a few words with the man standing outside of the door before leaving and letting the two of them have some privacy while they talked.

“Hey man. I promise I’m fine. No need to worry.” Lance said. He didn’t want to let Hunk start lecturing him on safety and looking after himself. He knew what he was getting himself into when he signed up. He just slipped up. It happens sometimes. 

“That’s good to hear.”

Lance’s eyes widened. That wasn’t Hunk. 

“You’re not- I thought- Uh hi.”

The black-haired man leaned on the foot of the bed, looking away from Lance like he really didn’t want to be there. That was Shiro. Lance’s hero and the man who had beat him up and sent him here. But, why was he here with Lance? He won the match. There wasn’t a need to talk to Lance anymore.

“Yeah. Um- I’m sorry. You probably don’t want to see me. I just wanted to apologize for hurting you. It wasn’t my intention.” He tried to smile but he looked more like a sad puppy that had done something wrong. 

“It’s not that I don’t want to see you. I just thought you were someone else. That’s all.” Lance promised. He was intimidated by Shiro and his raw strength, but the blue-eyed boy wasn’t mad at him. 

“I don’t blame your for hurting me. I slipped up and you accidentally used too much strength. It was an accident.”

Shiro nodded. He shuffled his weight from one feet to the other. He looked like he still had something to say but he decided against it and stayed quiet.

.  
.  
.

The doors burst open, hitting the wall with a loud bang as another boy ran in. 

“Shiro!” The boy yelled. He was tall and pale and impossibly thin. He didn’t look like he would be able to hold his own in a fight. But there was a determined fire behind his amethyst eyes that made Lance think he would not go down without a fight. His silky midnight black hair was tied up on a ponytail that fell past his shoulders. There was a black circle painted around his left little finger. He was an android and not just any android. He was the Red master. 

“Are you okay? I was told you were in the infirmary and I thought-”

“I’m fine” Shiro assured. His smile disappeared soon. “What happened to your neck?”

Keith covered his neck, but everyone in the room had already seen the dent.

“Who did this to you?” Shiro asked, trying to reach for the android but he stepped away. “Was it Nyma?”

“I can handle it. I don’t need you to baby me!” Keith protested. Lance felt like he was watching an episode of a reality TV series. It was so bizarre.

“Keith, she is way too violent. You have to tell someone.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “I told you, I can handle it!”

“What is going on in here?” Luxia asked. “You are disturbing the patient. You don’t even have permission to be here. Get out!” She yelled, pointing at the door.

Shiro grabbed Keith’s hand. “We are sorry ma’am. We’ll take our leave.”

Luxia huffed. “You better, If I find you harassing my patients again I will bring this to Mr. Dazal’s attention.”

Both Shiro and Keith paled. Nobody wanted to get on Mr. Dazal’s bad side. He wasn’t a forgiving man. He wouldn’t hesitate to throw someone out in the streets if he heard a complaint about them by one of his employees.

“Won’t happen again ma’am. There’s no reason to report this.” The two quickly left the room.

Luxia cursed under her breath. “Are you okay. They didn’t try to hurt you?”

Lance shook his head quickly. He didn’t want them to get in trouble for hurting or disturbing him. They were only yelling because they were disagreeing with each other. Lance just happened to be in the room with them. 

Luxia nodded and sighed. “What is wrong with these androids nowadays. When I was young everything was so much simpler.” She started ranting while she walked away and left Lance alone with his thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A figure wearing a dark hoodie was making his way through the streets that were only lit up by store signs and streetlights. It was raining heavily and people were hurrying to get back to the comfort of their homes but the man was in no rush.  
> A shorter man slipped and lost his footing, causing him to crash against the hooded man. There was a string of mumbled apologies as the shorter man straightened himself. He looked up and got a glimpse of the face under the hood. The man had a scar across his nose and piercing gray eyes.  
> "Shiro?"


End file.
